NASCAR Rides Surging Ratings As It Eyes New Media Rights Deal

NASCAR has waved the checkered flag on the Fox portion of the 2022 Cup Series — and now looks to ride its momentum of surging ratings on NBC.

Thanks to a strong kickoff with the exhibition race The Clash at the L.A. Coliseum (4.3 million average viewers) followed by the Daytona 500 (9 million — highest since 2019), NASCAR’s average Cup Series viewership is averaging 3.7 million, an increase of 8% over 2021.

An average of 4 million tuned into the Bristol Dirt event on Easter, then another 4.7 million at Talladega Superspeedway.

NASCAR viewership is at its highest since 2017, which coincides with Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s last full season of racing. 

“We’ve been able to take advantage of a lot of these tentpole moments that have set up well from a network perspective and applied those gains to positive viewership through the first half of the season,” said Brian Herbst, NASCAR Senior Vice President, Media, and Productions.

According to Herbst, the entire top 20 — and 43 of the top 50 — most-viewed telecasts on FS1 are NASCAR-related.

Herbst touted yearly increases in viewership among the Black and Hispanic demographics since the current 10-year broadcast deal with Fox and NBC began in 2015. He cited the popularities of Bubba Wallace and Daniel Suarez as a major factor, along with social justice and progressive action initiatives implemented in 2020.

“Folks who previously didn’t watch NASCAR are now watching NASCAR,” Herbst said. “Having two high-profile drivers who are performing like Bubba and Danny certainly has been really meaningful, but some of the steps we’ve taken in the industry have borne fruit, as well.”

The surge in ratings is coming at a good time for NASCAR as it prepares to embark on negotiations for a new broadcast deal in 2024. Talks will begin next year, and a starting point could be along the lines of the widely reported $800 million per year — or $8 billion over the course of 10 years — that NASCAR currently has with Fox (Fox and FS1) and NBC (NBC and USA).

“We historically have done our TV deals about a year-and-a-half before the expiration of the last deal because they are pretty sizable for both the networks and for NASCAR,” Herbst said. “Next year will likely be a busy year when we start discussions about media rights deals with Fox and NBC and anybody else who would be interested.

“We have great partnerships with Fox and NBC today — the relationship has never been stronger,” he added. “We work really well with Fox and NBC on the scheduling front to make sure our sport has as many eyeballs on it as possible. In terms of any other parties other than Fox and NBC that would be interested, it’s probably a bit too early to speculate — other than it seems like a pretty hot marketplace for sports media in general.”

In the meantime, NASCAR has planned two separate lifestyle programs to air on USA, one featuring former Daytona 500 and Coca-Cola 600 winner Austin Dillon and his family (June 23), and a behind-the-scenes, all-access show following playoff drivers (September).

NASCAR will also ramp up production enhancements during broadcasts, including in-car cameras in all 40 cars during the 2022 playoffs and the use of drones and unique camera angles.

Those enhanced views will further showcase tracks that are beginning to flourish again after the onset of the pandemic.

“It’s great to have fans fully back in the stands,” Herbst said. “We’ve had a number of sellout events already this year. Momentum on the attendance side also translates to momentum in TV viewership.”